Agendas, reports and minutes

A meeting of the Community Planning Board will take place in the Board Room, Assynt House, Beechwood Park, Inverness on Wednesday 3 June 2015 at 10.00 am.

As a Community Planning Partner, you are invited to attend the Board meeting and the business to be considered is noted below.

Business

1. Apologies for Absence

2. Minutes of Meeting

i. Community Planning Board

There are circulated for approval Minutes of the last Meeting held on 4 March 2015.

ii. Chief Officers’ Group

There are circulated for reference Notes of Meetings held on 23 February 2015 and 26 March 2015.

3. Local Democratic Experiments and Community Empowerment

i. Participatory Democracy and Community Empowerment

Dr Oliver Escobar (Edinburgh University, specialising in participatory democracy) and Fiona Garven (Chief Executive, Scottish Community Development Centre) will be in attendance to undertake presentations on participatory democracy and the work they are involved in nationally on this topic.

As background information in that regard, there is circulated (38-55) Report No CPB/06/15 by the Head of Policy and Reform, Highland Council which summarises the key findings from the Strengthening Local Democracy Commission and the other drivers for supporting participatory democracy and community empowerment within the Highland CPP. The links between democracy and inequalities are highlighted and the findings are relevant for all public bodies in the partnership as well as the third sector.

There is also circulated (56-62) an Executive Summary in relation to Citizens’ Juries on wind farm development in Scotland.

The Board is invited to note the issues raised in the report and presentations.

ii. Progress with Local Discussions on Reviewing Local Community Planning Arrangements and Council Area Committees

There is circulated Report No CPB/07/15 by the Head of Policy and Reform, Highland Council which provides an update on progress being made with reviewing Local Community Planning arrangements and Area Committees. Initial discussions have been underway in the last round of District Partnership meetings and by the time of the Board meeting discussions will have taken place in 12 Wards with Elected Members.

The Board is invited to:-

i. note the progress being made in early conversations through District Partnerships and among local Elected Members;

ii. comment on the ideas emerging, note they might support new legislative requirements and consider how they can support the conversations needed locally as early next steps;

iii. identify any benefits and concerns they feel arise from the ideas so far; and

iv. note that no agreement is sought at this time to change arrangements locally but, with further work and conversations to take place over the summer, a further report will be provided to the Board in September this year. This provides three months to develop acceptable proposals for local experiments in some areas to improve community planning. Proper regard will be given to each partner’s governance arrangements before any changes can take place.

4. Presentation: Highland Biodiversity Action Plan (2015-2020)

There is circulated Report No CPB/08/15 by the Highland Biodiversity Officer, Highland Council, which explains that the Highland Environment Forum has reviewed and updated the Highland Biodiversity Action Plan and it will be launched in late June 2015. The report provides an update on progress made by the partners to deliver the Highland Biodiversity Action Plan (HBAP) (2010-2013) and a summary of the new HBAP (2015-2020).

Ms J Bromham, Highland Biodiversity Officer, will undertake a presentation in amplification of the report.

The Board is invited to note the report and accompanying presentation.  

5. Presentation: Developing the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Strategic Plan 2016/19

Mr Scott Hay, Area Manager – Service Delivery, and Mr John MacDonald, Group Manager, will undertake a presentation on the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Strategic Plan 2016/19.

The Board is invited to consider the following:-

i. What are the key strengths of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service?

ii. As a local partner, what are our shared challenges and opportunities?

iii. What do you think the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service can do to help improve matters at local partnership level or nationally?

iv. What really matters to our local communities?

6. Delivering Partnership Outcomes

The following updates are provided by Responsible Officers on the current delivery plans for the Single Outcome Agreement (SOA), the partnership’s agreed strategic priorities and developing partnership working:-

i. Economic Growth and Regeneration (Martin Johnson, HIE)
ii. Employability – (Stuart Black, HC)
iii. Early Years/Children (Bill Alexander, HC)
iv. Safer and Stronger Communities (Julian Innes, Police Scotland) 
v. Health Inequalities and Physical Inactivity (Cathy Steer, NHSH)
vi. Outcomes for Older People (Jan Baird, NHSH)
vii. Environmental Outcomes (George Hogg, SNH)
viii. Community Learning and Development (Bill Alexander, HC)
ix. SOA Development Plan (Carron McDiarmid, HC)

The Board is asked to scrutinise the progress reported.

7. Highland Local Policing Plan

Chief Superintendent Julian Innes will provide a verbal update on the Highland Local Policing Plan.

8. Deprivation and Inequalities – Rural Analysis

There is circulated Report No CPB/09/15 by the Head of Policy and Reform, Highland Council, and the Head of Health Improvement, NHS Highland, which provides an update on the work of the Health Inequalities Group to develop a joint understanding of deprivation and inequalities in rural Highland.

The Board is invited to:-

i. comment on the progress made by the Health Inequalities Group and the analytical work produced in Annex 2; ii. agree that there is sufficient analysis at this time from the three indices in use to identify rural areas for the CPP to focus efforts to reduce inequalities;
iii. agree that the 16 rural communities listed in Table 4 and the small rural towns listed in Table 3 are the focus for CPP collaboration to reduce inequalities. This would complement the work underway in the four areas of urban deprivation; and
iv. subject to the priority areas above being agreed, consider how best to progress this work together given the CPP Board’s agreement to “…tackle deprivation and inequalities including by improving access and connectedness for communities.”

9. Redesign of Community Justice

There is circulated Report No CPB/10/15 by the Director of Care and Learning, Highland Council, which sets out the requirement for new governance and planning arrangements for Community Justice Services. Options for local arrangements are outlined, and it is recommended that these are considered by the Community Planning Partnership Board. The Council’s Education, Children and Adult Services Committee and the Community Planning Partnership Chief Officers’ Group have agreed that the proposal outlined at paragraph 3.2 of the report would meet the governance requirements for Community Justice in Highland.

The Board is invited to:-

i. note the planned change in governance arrangements for Community Justice; and
ii. agree to the option outlined in paragraph 3.2 of the report for the future model of planning Community Justice Services.

10. Locating Public Access Defibrillators in Highland

At its meeting on 4 March 2015, the Board agreed that a mapping exercise be carried out in relation to the provision of defibrillators in local communities. In that regard, there is circulated Report No CPB/11/15 by the Director of Adult Care and the Director of Public Health, NHS Highland which provides an update on progress.

The report proposes that the information gathered by the CPP to date be shared to inform the national work but that further locally targeted work would be of no added benefit at this stage. In addition, it would be particularly helpful to inform the national work of the Lucky2bhere initiative and the considerable impact it has had on local communities across Highland, not only by supporting the purchase of defibrillators but by providing vital training.

The Board is invited to consider the proposals.

11. Breakthrough Achievement for the Highland CPP 2015/16 – Employment of Care Leavers

The Director of Care and Learning will provide a verbal update in relation to the proposal by Chief Officers to offer employment to Highland’s care leavers.

12. Date of Next Meeting

The next meeting will be held on Friday 11 September 2015 in the Council Chamber, Highland Council Headquarters, Inverness.